Quick & Easy Mosaics with NO Days Groutless Mosaic Adhesive

No Days Groutless Mosaic Adhesive


No Days Groutless Mosaic Adhesive from Streuter Technologies is a non-toxic adhesive film that allows you to both glue  and “grout” in one step, eliminating the mess and wait time of traditional adhesives and grout! 


Before beginning any large project with new materials or techniques, it’s always helpful to create a small sample piece so you’ll have a better idea of how much adhesive you’ll need to use for particular projects. 

 

Begin by cutting the adhesive to the size of your substrate using scissors or a craft blade.

Place the cut adhesive sheet on top of your substrate and begin to build your mosaic with glass, ceramic or stone tiles. If you need to heat set only a portion of your mosaic, use a craft blade to remove any adhesive that is not covered with tiles.


Once your tiles are in place, you can begin heating with a heat gun or embossing tool set to low from approximately 6” to 8” above your piece, gradually moving closer.  As the tile pieces heat up, the adhesive will begin to liquify. Continue heating and apply slight pressure to the tiles with a hand tool so the adhesive begins to surround and fill the gap between the tile pieces.


When using one layer of adhesive, your grout lines should be approximately 1/16”.
If there are gaps between the tiles that are greater than this, you’ll need to use a tool (like tweezers, a skewer or a dental pick) to move the pieces around while you’re heating, causing the adhesive to fill in and “Grout” the gaps. 


For grout lines that are 1/8” or slightly wider, you may want to use two layers of adhesive in order for the “grout” to be flush with the tiles.


When finished heating, you will have about a minute to continue to shift tiles around while the adhesive cools, sets and cures. When the adhesive has completely cooled,  your mosaic is finished. If you need to remove or re-position any tile pieces, simply re-heat, adjust and allow to cool again.


For more project ideas and instructional videos, visit http://www.Streuter.com.
For ordering information or help with questions, email info@streuter.com.


TROUBLESHOOTING
The adhesive has pulled back and exposed the substrate.
As the adhesive is heated, it liquifies and will pull back and puddle if there are no tiles covering it. Continue to heat and using a heatproof tool, push the pieces into the adhesive to force the grout up and around the edges of the tiles. You can move the tiles around and spread the adhesive to cover the substrate.


The adhesive is not flush with my mosaic tiles.
If you’re working with one layer of adhesive, the grout lines need to be minimal (1/16” or less). If your grout lines are wider, you’ll need to place two layers of adhesive down before heating. This is why it’s important to make a sample piece first.  If you know how much adhesive you need for the design you’re working on, you’ll save yourself from having to remove the tiles or piecing in more adhesive.


I got adhesive on top of my tiles. How do I get it off?
If you get excess adhesive on top of your tiles, there are a few ways to remove it. If possible, you can use a razor and scrape it off. If there’s a waxy residue, you can use mineral spirits on a towel to wipe it clean. If there’s just a thin layer of adhesive, you can heat it quickly with the heat gun and wipe it clean. (Be sure to heat quickly, so that you don’t reactivate the adhesive and begin moving tiles around again.)